That counted as a kiss.
After licking his fingertip, Shi Qi looked at Shang Sui with satisfaction, a faint smile blooming at the corners of his lips.
The Omega’s thin eyelids were tinged with red, and the overwhelming reliance and affection in his gaze made his eyes especially moist—his expression vivid and emotionally charged, almost seductive in its intensity.
It was as if what he truly wanted to lick was something else.
Shang Sui stared at his pink lips and tongue, and obscene thoughts involuntarily flashed through his mind. His Adam’s apple bobbed slowly, and his voice turned hoarse.
“What are you thinking about, Xiao Qi?”
Shi Qi didn’t answer.
It took him a while before he sluggishly replied, “Not telling you.”
He turned and placed his dripping wet finger under the faucet, intending to wash it again.
What he didn’t expect was that the Alpha behind him, like a dog catching the scent of a meaty bone, couldn’t resist and came pressing up against him.
“Let me help you?”
Before he could respond, Shang Sui had already squeezed out a bit of clear hand soap and slid his fingers between Shi Qi’s.
They were standing too close. His back was pressed tightly against the other’s chest, and Shi Qi instinctively tensed.
When he felt Shang Sui’s thumb circle over the sensitive center of his palm, Shi Qi flinched slightly, then quickly stilled.
He caught a glimpse of the mirror. Because of their difference in height and build, he looked completely wrapped in the other’s arms.
Shang Sui whispered against his ear like a devil, his clingy tone making Shi Qi’s knees weak. “Your fingers are so slender, so pretty.”
Shang Sui wore several wide rings on his fingers. The brushed silver glinted under the running water.
By comparison, Shi Qi’s fingers were indeed narrower than his.
Noticing that Shi Qi was genuinely comparing their hands, Shang Sui paused for a moment.
For an instant, he wanted to press Shi Qi right up against the sink.
“Alright, they’re clean now.” He suppressed the crude impulse and returned to his gentle manner. “Let’s go.”
Shi Qi didn’t notice anything amiss. He lifted a hand to tug at him, and Shang Sui, understanding immediately, interlaced their fingers.
Shi Qi smiled with his eyes, happily following him.
Back in the private room, Shang Sui picked up his phone and saw a message from Qin Shuhe, sent just a short while ago.
Qin Shuhe: [Ge! We decided on barbecue. We’ll be at the restaurant in about half an hour. You guys come when you can?]
Qin Shuhe: [Shared Location]
Shang Sui replied with an “OK,” then turned to Shen Qianyu and Jiang Yan. “We’ll be heading off now.”
Jiang Yan hadn’t yet managed to drink himself into a stupor and panicked when he heard that. “No! Stay a bit longer.”
Shang Sui ignored him and looked at Shen Qianyu instead. “Happy birthday.”
Shen Qianyu responded with a faint nod. Seeing the stark contrast in their reactions, Shang Sui said, “Why don’t you just give in to him, for his birthday’s sake?”
Jiang Yan: “?”
“Oh, wait,” Shang Sui corrected himself considerately. “Let him give in to you.”
Jiang Yan’s face turned ashen. “Just go already.”
Shang Sui helped Shi Qi into a thick down jacket. Seeing how cooperative he was the whole time, like a toy letting itself be handled, he couldn’t resist playing around a little. “Come on, say goodbye to everyone.”
“Bye, Shen Qianyu. Happy birthday.” Shi Qi was very obedient. “Bye, Jiang Yan.”
Shen Qianyu responded cooperatively, “See you next time.”
Jiang Yan said, “Ah, bye-bye, bye-bye.”
After they left, Jiang Yan couldn’t help propping up his face with a smile. “He’s so cute.”
Shen Qianyu shot him a cold look, thinking to himself that Jiang Yan really did prefer Omegas. His tone carried a warning. “You’d better be careful. Shi Qi is Shang Sui’s boyfriend.”
“…That’s not what I meant! I just meant appreciation, like looking at a pretty kitten or puppy!”
Shang Sui led a dazed Shi Qi all the way forward.
At some point, the snowfall outside had stopped. The moment the cold air hit him, Shi Qi twitched his nose.
Shang Sui tucked him into the warm car and reached over to fasten his seatbelt. With the distance between them so close, Shi Qi could clearly see his long eyelashes and the beauty mark at the corner of his eye.
His breath hitched slightly, and he searched for something to say. “You’re driving?”
“Mm. Things might take a while with Qin Shuhe and the others, so I let the driver off early.”
Shi Qi nodded, thinking Shang Sui was quite kind-hearted.
Just as Jiang Yan had said, that colorful cocktail really packed a delayed punch. Sitting in the comfortably warm car, Shi Qi quickly felt drowsy.
Without realizing it, he closed his eyes and slowly drifted into a light sleep.
By the time he woke up again, they had arrived at the parking lot.
Shang Sui helped him out of the car. Just then, a vehicle nearby honked at them, and Shi Qi irritatedly looked up, only to see Qin Shuhe’s enthusiastic face.
“Shi Qi! Ge!”
Upon seeing who it was, Shi Qi’s expression improved considerably. Lin Yan trotted over and cheerfully flashed a peace sign. “How many fingers am I holding up?”
Shi Qi said nothing, simply giving him a look as if he were an idiot.
Chu Tao had just parked and stepped out of the driver’s seat. “We brought someone else too.”
She gestured as she spoke. “Come on down, superstar.”
The last to step out of the car was a young Alpha wearing a baseball cap that covered most of his face.
He was wearing smoky eye makeup and greeted enthusiastically, “Hi, long time no see.”
Shi Qi was silent for a moment. “Who are you?”
“…”
Lin Yan burst out laughing. “It’s Ying Yuran! Don’t you recognize him?”
They had gone to see Mirage’s concert today. Ying Yuran was the group’s main dancer, and also a high school classmate and university peer of both Lin Yan and Shi Qi.
He had briefly studied at A University for three months before debuting and had joined the dance club.
Chu Tao was quite familiar with him. She laughed and chimed in, “It’s your own fault for putting on so much makeup.”
Then she turned to Shi Qi, asking sweetly, “Xiao Qi, do you still recognize me?”
Shi Qi met her gaze for a second, then turned around and buried his head in Shang Sui’s chest.
“…” Chu Tao shrugged. “Alright then, this cat only recognizes Sui-ge now.”
Right on cue, Qin Shuhe’s voice cut in, “Let’s go, let’s eat first. I’m starving.”
Shi Qi seemed to find them too noisy and kept burrowing into Shang Sui’s arms, trying to hide himself.
Shang Sui couldn’t help rubbing his head, and Shi Qi clearly liked it, leaning against him without moving.
Qin Shuhe said cheerfully, “He gets this clingy when he’s drunk? Ge, you might as well carry him.”
Chu Tao joined the teasing, “Agreed, agreed! Our princess deserves a proper princess carry!”
Ying Yuran looked at the scene with curiosity. “Shi Qi is really in a relationship?”
“What else? You think we’re lying to you?”
“His boyfriend is seriously handsome.” Ying Yuran sighed with emotion. “I used to feel a little unconvinced, but now I totally accept it.”
Lin Yan knew he was joking; otherwise, he wouldn’t have brought him along.
Ying Yuran had a crush on Shi Qi back in high school, but once he realized Shi Qi wasn’t interested, he gave up completely after a week of sadness.
He handled it with such restraint that Shi Qi had never noticed the emotional rollercoaster he’d gone through.
Lin Yan had seen through Ying Yuran’s feelings, but since the other party had willingly stepped back into a friend’s role, he never brought it up to Shi Qi.
Considering Ying Yuran was a celebrity, Qin Shuhe had deliberately chosen a barbecue restaurant with a semi-private partition.
Everyone raised their glasses together to toast Qin Shuhe—
“Happy birthday!”
The clink of glassware rang out crisply. That was when Shang Sui finally noticed that Shi Qi’s glass didn’t have cola. “You’re drinking?”
Shi Qi: “Hm?”
He was drinking the raspberry beer Chu Tao had ordered. Unlike the bitterness he remembered from beer, this one was light and sweet.
After finishing one glass, Shi Qi wanted more. “That was good… one more.”
Lin Yan teased him, “Now you’re really a drunk cat.”
Afraid he’d drink too much and feel sick, Shang Sui added ice to his glass and only poured in half the beer, but it still looked full. “Don’t drink too much.”
Shi Qi didn’t notice Shang Sui’s little trick and took the glass back.
Lin Yan saw the whole thing and kept nodding to himself.
Among the Alphas who matched Shi Qi’s aesthetic, nine out of ten were scumbags. But unlike his seductive appearance, Shang Sui was far more dependable than he’d imagined and incredibly attentive to Shi Qi.
And with their compatibility, if they were ever willing to bond, it could even help cure Shi Qi’s condition.
In a way, he felt that Shang Sui’s appearance was like a gift specially prepared for Shi Qi, as if bestowed by fate.
Several of the people present were chatterboxes. As they talked, the topic naturally shifted to high school.
Lin Yan suddenly thought of something. “Speaking of which, I saw a lot of Endless Summer hydrangeas in Qijiang. It reminded me that Shi Qi’s graduation bouquet was hydrangeas too.”
He turned to Ying Yuran. “Didn’t you give it to him?”
Shi Qi also recalled that incident.
Their graduation ceremony had been held after the college entrance exams, on the summer solstice.
Jiang Youning had prepared flowers for him in advance and asked him to bring them to school. She would come later with the older generation to take photos with him.
But Ying Yuran had accidentally knocked over his bouquet. As luck would have it, that area was under construction at the time, and the bouquet fell right into a muddy pit. Picking it back up took quite an effort.
Watching the flowers scatter in the mud, Shi Qi’s expression turned cold.
Ying Yuran hurriedly apologized and rushed off in a panic to buy flowers. In the end, he came back with a blue and pink bouquet built around Endless Summer hydrangeas, accented with larkspur and spirea.
Shi Qi originally didn’t want to use flowers given by him for his graduation photo, but he couldn’t find a replacement in time, and the bouquet really was beautiful.
Ying Yuran raised his hand. “I confess, I didn’t actually buy the flowers. A really kind, super handsome guy gave them to me.”
“Everyone was buying flowers, and there weren’t many left at the flower shop by the school gate. I saw him passing by, and he didn’t really look like someone here for graduation, so I tentatively asked him if he’d sell me the bouquet for double the price.”
“He didn’t take a single cent, just gave them to me.” Remembering it, Ying Yuran was still touched. In his mind, that handsome guy radiated the brilliance of human kindness. “Seriously, he was so good-looking! You could tell even with a mask on.”
“An Alpha?”
“Mm, his eyes looked like they could shoot sparks.”
As he spoke, he subconsciously glanced at Shang Sui.
He had wanted to say the man’s eyes reminded him a little of Shi Qi’s boyfriend—those slightly upturned, fox-like eyes. But thinking it might sound inappropriate, he held back in the end.
Chu Tao clicked her tongue. “Have you been doing too much fanservice with your teammates? You’re an Alpha, but you talk about same-sex people in such a suggestive way.”
Tonight, topics about ambiguous relationships between Alphas came up one after another. As the conversation went on, Shi Qi turned his head and noticed Shang Sui hadn’t said a word, deep in thought with an unreadable expression.
Shi Qi couldn’t help asking, “You don’t like Alphas, do you?”
“Hm?”
Shang Sui snapped out of it. At first, he was going to flat-out deny it, but then he felt like teasing a little. “What do you think?”
Shi Qi went quiet for a moment, then said directly, “You’re not allowed to.”
As he spoke, he reached for more beer, only to discover the bottle was empty.
Earlier, Shang Sui had been distracted by the conversation and hadn’t noticed that Shi Qi had quietly finished the entire bottle on his own.
The slight blush that had faded earlier returned to Shi Qi’s cheeks. Compared to earlier at Huijian, he looked even more dazed. Holding the empty bottle with anticipation, he tried to pour from it for a full minute before finally realizing there wasn’t a single drop left.
He was really drunk.
No wonder he was overthinking, asking such strange questions.
“Xiao Qi, no more drinking.” Shang Sui saw him trying to open another bottle and quickly caught his hands. “You’ll feel sick.”
Both of Shi Qi’s wrists were easily held by one of Shang Sui’s hands, like being locked in cuffs.
Shi Qi struggled hard for a while but couldn’t break free. Then he started fussing, “No, no! Give it to me!”
Shang Sui paused for a moment, then simply moved the bottle away so the drunkard wouldn’t see it.
Seeing how many times Shang Sui had pushed his buttons tonight, Shi Qi finally had a small outburst. “You have to listen to me. That’s just how things work in my family.”
Since childhood, Shi An had taught him that disobedient Alphas weren’t worth keeping. Jiang Youning had even encouraged him to find someone from a poor background.
Sorry, Dad, jiejie.
Shi Qi thought gloomily.
The Alpha I like not only comes from a good family but also goes against me.
Shang Sui saw him throwing a tantrum and knew he shouldn’t laugh at a time like this, but he couldn’t stop the corners of his lips from curling up. “I do listen to you.”
“No, you don’t.” Seeing that he still had the mood to smile, Shi Qi glared at him. “Forget about not signing the contract to sell yourself, but you grabbed my hand, and on top of that, you…”
You won’t even kiss me.
The more Shi Qi thought about it, the more upset he felt. With both hands still held down, he simply stomped on Shang Sui’s foot. “You haven’t even entered the door, and you’re already trying to climb on top of me.”
Right after stomping, he realized he might’ve been too unreasonable. Feeling guilty, he glanced at Shang Sui—
Only to find the other man momentarily stunned before bursting into uncontrollable laughter, like it was the funniest thing.
Taking advantage of Shi Qi’s hazy state, Shang Sui made a dirty joke. “Alright then, you climb on top of me.”
His voice drawled slightly, and he deliberately emphasized the last few words. However it was interpreted, it was far from innocent.
Shi Qi didn’t catch the innuendo. He only thought it meant he could get closer.
After a moment’s thought, he got up from his seat.
Qin Shuhe had booked a private room with a long table and sofa bench. Shi Qi and Shang Sui sat at the innermost spot. Shi Qi stumbled closer to Shang Sui.
He took a look and realized the seat was a bit cramped for Shang Sui, and his long legs couldn’t fully stretch out. That made what was coming next feel a little unfair to him.
But then again, Shang Sui had told him to sit on him himself.
Shi Qi stopped hesitating, bent down, hooked his leg, and plopped down right on top of him.
Before Shang Sui could even react, he felt the sudden weight in his lap.
That soft body pressed against him, carrying the crisp scent of lily of the valley. Shi Qi’s platinum blond hair brushed past his shoulder, grazing over his collarbone like fluff, before he abruptly lifted his head to look at him.
When their eyes met, Shi Qi was the first to speak. “You said so yourself. You’re not allowed to push me off.”
He was originally sitting sideways with his legs together on Shang Sui’s lap. Then he started shifting around, trying to straddle him properly, to better match the concept of “being on top.”
Across from them, Ying Yuran was recalling old embarrassing memories and couldn’t help but laugh. “Back in high school, Fu Siyue actually threatened me not to like Shi Qi.”
“No way, for real?” Lin Yan cracked up. “Fu Siyue pulled that kind of crap?”
“All that fighting over him back then didn’t mean a thing. Our baby didn’t like anyone,” Lin Yan said as he glanced to his side. “Now it’s different though. Now he’s got someone he likes… Shi Qi! What are you doing in public?!”
Shi Qi turned his head, eyes gleaming. “Shang Sui told me I could—” climb on top of him.
Shang Sui quickly covered his mouth. “Be good. Don’t say it.”
After drinking, Shi Qi’s whole face flushed red.
In contrast, Shang Sui’s fingers were cool to the touch, wrapped in the scent of the pheromones Shi Qi liked so much. Shi Qi paused, then leaned in, burying his face in Shang Sui’s palm.
Seeing that he was still squirming, Shang Sui gave his waist a squeeze with just enough pressure to stop him.
“Stay like this. Don’t move.”
Unlike the playful tone from earlier, the Alpha’s voice now allowed no refusal, carrying a faint hint of warning.
Shi Qi belatedly realized how suggestive their position was. His face burned, and he obediently leaned against Shang Sui without moving.
Ying Yuran had been holding it in all night, but now he couldn’t help saying to Shang Sui, “Hey, ge… you look kind of familiar.”
Shi Qi scoffed. “That pickup line is so outdated.”
“?”
Ying Yuran was at a loss for words. “No, I might play up for fans, but I’m not actually gay!”
“Then why have you been staring at him?” Shi Qi said. “You’ve looked at him several times tonight. Don’t think I didn’t notice.”
“I just…”
“Hey, wait, wait, wait. Why can’t he look?” Lin Yan interrupted. “Shang Sui hasn’t said anything. Why are you so bothered?”
Qin Shuhe caught on and joined the teasing. “My ge’s face was born to be looked at.”
Chu Tao had been eating, but she put down her chopsticks when she heard that. “What do you mean? Are you teasing the cat? Count me in.”
Everyone was laughing, even Shang Sui was smiling.
So annoying.
Shi Qi thought.
He retorted, “No one’s allowed to look. He’s mine.”
Lin Yan beamed affectionately. “Baby, you’re so domineering.”
Shang Sui teased him too. “I haven’t even stepped through the door yet. Seems like you don’t get to decide.”
Shi Qi opened his mouth, unsure how to argue back.
He couldn’t out-talk them, so he decided to make his point with actions. His slender arm reached over and draped around Shang Sui’s shoulder.
Shang Sui lowered his head and met his eyes. Shi Qi’s gaze was as clear as if it had been rinsed with water, fixed intently on him.
A moment later—
Shi Qi looped both arms around Shang Sui’s neck like a mark of ownership and planted a loud kiss on his cheek.
Author’s note:
The Cat King has a trick up his sleeve
